PDA

View Full Version : My hair is falling out like crazy!



Magsi
April 18th, 2008, 08:03 PM
My hair is falling out so much that I am really worried. I know it's not breaking because all the fallen hair is long and I can see it's got the follicle. When I wash my hair, I pull out bunches of 10 hair at a time, all together. I used to wash daily and when I noticed the shedding I switched to every 2-3 days. I haven't been experimenting with shampoos or conditioners much so I don't think it's that.
I eat well, take vitamins every day, my skin is nearly perfect, my nails are strong. I don't think it's a nutrition issue. I am very worried and I need some advice. I do color, but I use non permanent color every 8 weeks. If I stop coloring, my hair comes in this weird dark gray color, not pretty. I'm 25 so that isn't a good look for me. What can I do to stop this?
Please help!!!

mommy101405
April 18th, 2008, 08:05 PM
My hair is falling out so much that I am really worried. I know it's not breaking because all the fallen hair is long and I can see it's got the follicle. When I wash my hair, I pull out bunches of 10 hair at a time, all together. I used to wash daily and when I noticed the shedding I switched to every 2-3 days. I haven't been experimenting with shampoos or conditioners much so I don't think it's that.
I eat well, take vitamins every day, my skin is nearly perfect, my nails are strong. I don't think it's a nutrition issue. I am very worried and I need some advice. I do color, but I use non permanent color every 8 weeks. If I stop coloring, my hair comes in this weird dark gray color, not pretty. I'm 25 so that isn't a good look for me. What can I do to stop this?
Please help!!!

Is there anything that would have caused a hormone change recently?

Kittee
April 18th, 2008, 08:06 PM
Could just be seasonal shedding, or could be medical. Really hard to say. You could always goto your doctor and get a quick check up.

Magsi
April 18th, 2008, 08:11 PM
I don't know if there is anything that could have caused hormonal changes. I haven't been doing anything different that I can think of.
I feel that I am healthy. The only medical issues I have are migraines and those are mostly under control. I wish I knew what to do :(

Moezland
April 18th, 2008, 08:17 PM
If this issue were mine, I'd head to the doctor for sure. What you're describing doesn't sound like normal shedding to me. Perhaps there is something going on that you're just not aware of, but a doctor could help you sort it out. If it's not medical then at least you will have ruled that out as a possibility.

Reasons for hair loss can be anything from heredity to thyroid issues or other illnesses, stress, toxic substances -and more. I'm certainly not trying to scare you, but it just seems like there may be more to what's going on than you know and it's better to be safe than sorry. I hope you find out what's going on and resolve this issue soon:flowers:.

MemSahib
April 18th, 2008, 08:32 PM
Have you had your thyroid checked? Is there thyroid trouble in your family?

Magsi
April 18th, 2008, 08:36 PM
I've never had thyroid trouble and I have had it checked before.
This is embarrassing to admit, but I take Zoloft.... could that be the reason?

mommy101405
April 18th, 2008, 08:39 PM
I've never had thyroid trouble and I have had it checked before.
This is embarrassing to admit, but I take Zoloft.... could that be the reason?


First off, don't be embarrassed. Secondly have you recently started it or started weaning off it. It could just be stress. Talk to your doctor.

senacia
April 18th, 2008, 08:42 PM
ack!! I would stop using chemical (temp or permanent) dyes! :(
Migraines have been associated with those who use chemical dyes as well as cancer. I would start using henna or henndigo if you are dying a red or a brown colour.. it's good for your hair although a little bit more difficult to do and could be a bit pricier.. but in the end, you will have healthier and beautiful hair!

I am a bit of a natural freak though.. it started with the birth of my daughter almost seven years ago. Since, I have switched from chemicals in everything including toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, handsoap..

although I am not saintlike.. I cant really afford organics all the time and I dont take a bunch of vitamins. I just try to eat as healthy as I can with the occasional big mac or whopper. :)

senacia
April 18th, 2008, 08:48 PM
(yes, Im new! Hi everyone!! :))

Although, the excessive shedding may just be due to something simple like stress..

Have you been brushing your hair as much as you used to? If you just suddenly noticed that you were shedding a whole lot, what some people do is to try to reduce their brushing in attempts to hold onto their hair. What that does is not help the actual normal shedding come out and when it does, a LOT comes out at once. Also, stress makes hair come out more too..

There ARE other thoughts too, like it's spring. If you live in a constantly warm climate, this may not affect you, but I am in Canada and during the winter I have THICK hair and in spring it sheds a lot.. kinda like an animal actually. :)

I dont disagree with everyone in that you SHOULD probably see your doctor, just to be sure!

Kirin
April 18th, 2008, 09:08 PM
Is the hair coming out when you shampoo, or after you condition and are rinsing?

I would go on and off loosing hair in the shower daily, wads of it, but some days less, some days more, always after conditioning. I stopped using conditioner, and the shed stopped, i maybe now shed 1-4 hairs a day in the shower now.

I use a leave in instead.

salamander
April 18th, 2008, 10:11 PM
When I wash my hair, I pull out bunches of 10 hair at a time, all together.

That right there doesn't sound normal. Even when I had a big hormonal shed two years ago, it didn't come out in bunches, I just lost more overall combing and showering. You might just be having a wacky shedding season, but it might be something nasty. Go get the doctor to run some tests, just in case.

BrianaFineHair
April 18th, 2008, 10:24 PM
I've often heard it's normal to loose about 100 strands a day. I thought it may be an old wive's tale so I googled it and many sites are saying the same thing, such as this one:

http://www.power-surge.com/educate/hairloss.htm

Read all the way down under "Hair Loss in women: It's more common than you may think",
Originally published in Mayo Clinic Health Letter

Lamb
April 18th, 2008, 10:25 PM
When I wash my hair, I pull out bunches of 10 hair at a time, all together. I used to wash daily and when I noticed the shedding I switched to every 2-3 days.
Believe it or not, there are people (myself included) who shed less when they wash daily. So perhaps changing your routine may hve something to do with it.
That said: get thee to a doctor, quick. I am having a major shed right now, too, I went to see a doctor, had a bloodtest done, waiting for the results. It can be seasonal, fall and spring are the usual seasons for shedding... but there may be a bazillion other reasons for it.

chickenprincess
April 18th, 2008, 10:33 PM
It may not be as weird as you feel ... I've always been a major shedder all my life. 10 strands isn't a big deal for me at all. In fact, one day I was obsessing that maybe I was shedding TOO much, so I counted all the strands that came out in that days washing and brushing. It was just under 100 - which is said to be a normal amount for any human to lose per day. It seems that when they're so extremely long, it just looks like more. So chill a little. This might be okay for you.

However, I agree you should re-evaluate your thyroid tests (and maybe have other general tests done).

But - Before you schedule more work, have your doctor's office read you the actual results of your last thyroid test. Have them tell you the numbers from the test - and ask which test was performed. Not all Doctor's are aware that there is a lower threshold for being considered hypo-thyroid than several years ago. Do some internet research. Also - read a book called, "what your doctor may not tell you about hypothyroidism" by Dr. Ken Blanchard (an endocrinologist from Boston). It runs in my family - and I'm borderline - so I have done a lot of reading. You can support your thyroid function with selenium and b-vitamins also - it makes a big difference for many people, including me.

Relax. You'll figure this out. No need to stress out.

Meli
April 19th, 2008, 12:10 AM
I've never had thyroid trouble and I have had it checked before.
This is embarrassing to admit, but I take Zoloft.... could that be the reason?

Don't be embarrased about taking Zoloft - sometimes that kind of medication is necessary. :flowers:

Zoloft may cause hairloss. I second that you talk to your doctor about it. Perhaps you need a different medicine. How long have you been taking it? It may take several weeks before any effects (good as well as bad) are noticed.

sapphire-o
April 19th, 2008, 01:00 AM
Mine is falling out like crazy, too. I just hope it's the season. You know it's getting warm now so we shed more naturally. I actually counted my shed hair in the shower before and know my "high shed season" has about 3 times as much shed hair as "low shed season". :) Hopefully it's just temporary and will go back to normal.

eadwine
April 19th, 2008, 01:57 AM
When I first started growing long hair in May, all was fine. Then come what was it.. August or so.. I started shedding like crazy and I freaked!

Of course this was something I had had before but I never noticed it!

But I did go to the doctor and told her I wanted a blood test.. told her I thought I was losing more hair than normal and the works. You know what she said? "You could be shedding, there is a time of year where that is normal, this does fit." Of course she did the test, everything came back great, and I wasn't worried anymore.

Soon after the shedding stopped, and I didn't give it a second thought anymore :) Get things tested, if only to ease your mind :)

ChloeDharma
April 19th, 2008, 03:09 AM
I have to agree with everybody else who has said to go and get checked out by your doctor. Hairloss can often be a symptom of an underlying condition and even if you feel healthy there could still be something going on. Once you have those results it's much easier to target how to address the shedding.

I'm assuming Zoloft is an anti-depressant given you feel embarassed about mentioning it. You shouldn't be.....there are plenty of people who have "issues" and stigma isn't one to add to the list, nobody is judging you for that.
You don't mention how long you have been taking it, but another member posted that it can cause hairloss so if you have started taking it reasonably recently then that might be your cause.

If those things can be ruled out, and you are happy that your diet is good then other things to consider are stress. Look to what's been going on up till about 3 months before the sudden shed started maybe even a bit before that.....was there a particularly stressfull period around then? That can cause something called Telogen Effluvium......where as a reaction your body prematurely sends a much higher than normal amount of hair follicles into the resting phase which then fall out around 3 months later.....but the good news is it grows back once the underlying cause is rectified.
If the stress is an ongoing thing then you need to work on stress management, and although you take a multivitamin it might be worth increasing things like B vitamins which are destroyed by stress hormones.
Other things like yoga, meditation, prayer if you are christian, exercise, massage, aromatherapy, watching funny films, socialising all help reduce stress levels and if its an issue then there are lots of sites online to give you advice if you do a search on it.

Things that i've found very helpfull for reducing shedding are daily scalp massages and bent over brushing with a BBB (some people find the brushing part doesn't work for their hair but just the massage is fine in that case), scalp oiling, there's a thread on the recipes section which lists a recipe studied by the dermatology department of the university of aberdeen that proved effective in treating hairloss. Also switching to washing with herbs has helped me alot and some other members have noticed the same thing.

I know how it feels to loose tons of hair, i lost over half my hair due to illness last year and it can feel so scary seeing your thickness reducing but tons of hair still coming out. Try not to panic though, i honestly believe there is no problem that with a bit of time and research can't be resolved. :)

tiny_teesha
April 19th, 2008, 03:51 AM
My mother dyed her hair with chemical dyes monthly since she was 20. Just a few months ago out of the blue she bought a new peroxide bottle because she ran out of the old one and got a massive reaction. Months ago. Only henna cures the bad dandruff it caused and her hair is STILL shedding. She vowed to never use chemicals again!
It may be that? Your body decided it is allergic to hair dye? or most probably not...

Aljona
April 19th, 2008, 03:54 AM
There is nothing to be embarassed about taking anti-depressants:) Many people take them, including me. I'm now taking remeron, before that I was taking Cipralex. While on cipralex I noticed some extra hairloss. I'm not sure it was because of the pills, it might also have been because of my low appetite. When you are depressed you so sometimes don't care about what you eat.

Thyroid issues and anemia can cause hairloss. I was anemic before because of some health issues and noticed a lot of extra hairloss. Thyroidissues also can give you depression so it could be a good idea to visit a doctor.

Kirry-Folk
April 19th, 2008, 05:03 AM
I'm not very active on here at all, but I had to let you know that my hair is falling out at an alarming rate as well. I just took a shower and got 80 (yes, I actually counted) and lost about 20-25 throughout the day, and another five when I combed my hair out and put it up into a bun.

I'm under a tremendous amount of stress (no pitying!) and it's something very new to me, as I am not familiar with stressing out because I'm usually a pretty calm person. My hair is waist length and was about 3.9" in circumference before all the nonsense began, and now it's about 3". That's enough for me to go have some bloodwork done, hah.

Zoloft may cause hair loss, or rather for ME it caused a bit of thinning when I was taking it several years ago. You might want to talk to your doctor about adjusting the dosage or maybe even switching to a different antidepressant if you and your doc. suspect that is the cause.

Try to keep your head up, even though losing all the hair is tough, being upset could make the problem worse (:mad: the stress! argh!). Above all else, be as gentle and careful with your hair as you can be. No updo's that are high up on your head (tension!) and try not to wear it down (I did this today and could FEEL the hairs falling out, and I had to keep pulling the strands away). Visit your doctor!

Magsi
April 19th, 2008, 07:30 AM
I just want to thank everyone for your responses. I will follow the advice given here and go see a doctor.

In the mean time, I will wear my hair up for a few days to keep it from tangling.

willowcandra
April 19th, 2008, 10:31 AM
Hair grows in cyles. Could just be that a large amount has reached the end of its resting phase all in one go. In a couple of months or so you should start to see lil baby hairs.

I wouldn't worry until you notice a significant reduction in width.-but seeing a doctor is never a bad thing if you are worried.

chickenprincess
April 20th, 2008, 08:34 AM
Things that i've found very helpfull for reducing shedding are daily scalp massages and bent over brushing with a BBB (some people find the brushing part doesn't work for their hair but just the massage is fine in that case), scalp oiling, there's a thread on the recipes section which lists a recipe studied by the dermatology department of the university of aberdeen that proved effective in treating hairloss. Also switching to washing with herbs has helped me alot and some other members have noticed the same thing.\

Could you please post a link to this recipe?

Also - I agree with the massages - when I do them I notice a differnce for the better. The difficulty can be remembering to do it before I'm too tired in the evening. When I can remember to do it, I like to massage while conditioning for 3 minutes (I condition only), and three minutes at bed time. I need to get into the habit of doing this daily - it does help.

jera
April 20th, 2008, 09:17 AM
Although it's not shameful to take meds, it's not healthy either. I took xanax for several years by doc's orders for anxiety and insomnia. When I weaned off them my hair fell out in sheets. This is very upsetting if you're long hair lover like me. I used ice bags to keep my head cool. Especially beneficial when sleeping. Visualization and relaxation techniques can help as well, and so does excerise, nature walks, dancing to music, doing anything you enjoy that takes your mind off it. Nutrition is invaluable. Eat well and enjoy your food.

I think the human spirit can control the body and defeat all the negatives that life can throw our way. It takes time to find out what works best for each individual. However if you're suffering and get too stressed out by watching hair loss, and who of us who not feel something seeing that, then visit your physician. At least it will put your mind at ease.

Good luck whatever you decide to do.


Lady Urlaine Interpreter of the Grove of Sacred Oaks in the Order of the Long Haired Knights

Rosepatrice
April 20th, 2008, 09:27 AM
Depression is stressful. Stress causes hair loss. Take Green Super Foods. Do you eat alot of greens? You should be getting 7-8 service of dark, leafy greens daily. Not only will that add tons of minerals and vitamins, it will aid in calming the neurotransmitters in the brain that triggers depression and stress related illnesses i.e. hairloss. There are so many causes of depression, but if you properly nourish your body with lots of alkaline foods, your chances of having a healthier body will be so much greater!! Also, if you're not taking amino acids, do so. Biotin, and B12 is a must.